Authors: Amanda Ashley
After making sure she hadn’t left anything behind, Kari checked out of the apartment and they went out to dinner.
After ordering, Kari looked at Ana Luisa. Determined to make the best of things, she smiled and said, “I guess you must be overwhelmed by all this.”
“Overwhelmed, yes,” the girl replied. “It is all so…different. Have you known Jason very long?”
Kari blinked at her, surprised at the abrupt change of topic. “Not very.”
“Are you in love with him?”
The girl was nothing if not direct, Kari thought. “Excuse me?”
“Jason. Do you have strong feelings for him?”
A number of answers flitted through Kari’s mind, but she decided on the truth. “Yes, I do.”
“Does he have feelings for you also?”
“I think so.”
Ana Luisa pushed her plate away. “I am ready to go now.”
With a sigh of exasperation, Kari finished her drink and signaled for the check.
The drive to the airport was made in chilly silence. Ana Luisa stared out the window, her hands folded in her lap.
Kari parked her rental car in the space provided, grabbed her luggage from the backseat, and walked briskly toward the terminal, not caring if Ana Luisa followed her or not.
Rourke was waiting for them outside the terminal when they arrived. Kari took him aside. “The coffin?” she asked. “Did you check to make sure it’s onboard?”
“Yes,” he said. “Do not worry.”
She glanced at Ana Luisa. “What do you think she’ll do when the plane takes off?”
“She will fall asleep as soon as you board,” he said confidently, “and she will not awake until the plane lands.”
Kari didn’t doubt him for a minute.
What happened from that point on was like something out of a science-fiction movie. She didn’t know what kind of vampire mojo Rourke exerted, but no one they passed en route to the plane paid any attention to him or to Ana Luisa. It was as if neither one of them existed.
Kari didn’t know if it was luck or vampire magic, but the seat next to hers was vacant. Ana Luisa sat down, Rourke leaned over and whispered something in her ear, and in a heartbeat, she was asleep.
“Amazing,” Kari murmured.
“Indeed,” Rourke said with a smile, then vanished from her sight.
Kari’s hands gripped the armrest as the plane taxied down the runway, then lifted off. She watched the earth fall away, gradually growing smaller and smaller until it disappeared beneath the cover of the clouds. It was an odd feeling to look out the window and see only thick white clouds and a bit of blue sky. She knew the earth was still down there, but she would have been happier if she could see it.
If she had her way, she would never fly again. She was tapping her foot restlessly, wishing the flight was over, when she heard Rourke’s voice whisper in her mind.
“Relax, sweeting. You will soon be home.”
“Not soon enough,”
she thought.
The faintly amused sound of his laughter made her smile.
“Are you all right?”
“I am quite comfortable.”
She shook her head, thinking no one would believe any of this.
Again, the soft sound of his laughter filled her mind.
“I have complicated your life, haven’t I?”
“In ways you can’t imagine,” she muttered.
The soft sound of his laughter filled her mind again.
With a sigh, Kari stared out the window. The next thing she knew, the stewardess was shaking her awake.
It was a little after noon when their flight landed. Ana Luisa woke as soon as the plane came to a halt. Again, no one paid any attention to the girl when they left the plane or when they moved through the airport. Kari picked up her luggage and loaded it into Mel’s hearse, then opened the passenger door for Ana Luisa.
“Get in,” Kari said.
Ana Luisa climbed into the vehicle as if it might swallow her whole.
Kari grinned inwardly. Ana Luisa didn’t say a word when Kari showed her how to fasten the seat belt, or when Kari closed the door, but all the color drained out of the girl’s face when Kari put the hearse in gear and pulled out of the parking structure.
Kari’s next stop was to pick up the coffin.
Ana Luisa frowned as two attendants slid the coffin into the back of the hearse. “Who is in there?” she asked.
“An acquaintance,” Kari replied, and left it at that. Rourke had told her that Ana Luisa didn’t know that he was a vampire. As far as she was concerned, when the time came, he could tell the girl the truth and handle the aftermath, whatever that might be.
“Where is Rourke?” Ana Luisa asked. She glanced around, obviously looking for him.
“He’ll join us later.”
“But…”
“I can’t explain it now,” Kari said. “Don’t worry. He’s going to meet us at my house.”
Kari was grateful for Ana Luisa’s silence on the drive home. The last few days had left her feeling utterly exhausted. She couldn’t wait to get home, to sleep in her own bed.
Kari let out a sigh when she pulled into the driveway. After stepping out of the hearse, she gathered her luggage and carried it up to the front door, then went back and locked the hearse. Returning to the house, she opened the front door and stepped inside. After staying in the tiny apartment in Bucharest, her house seemed huge.
Ana Luisa followed Kari inside, her eyes alight with interest as she went, uninvited, from room to room. Kari trailed behind her, answering her questions, doing her best to explain what the various appliances were and how they worked.
In the bathroom, Kari showed Ana Luisa the tub and asked if she’d like to bathe.
“Is this like the shower?” the girl asked.
“Sort of, only you do it sitting down. Didn’t you take baths in your time?”
“Not often,” Ana replied as she studied the tub. “And never in anything like this.”
“Well, people in my time usually bathe every day.”
“What if I don’t wish to bathe every day?”
Kari shrugged. “I guess that’s up to you. You can take a shower, if you’d rather, although I think baths are more relaxing, but it’s up to you.”
“I should like to bathe,” Ana Luisa decided.
Kari showed her how to turn the tap on and off, added a generous amount of jasmine-scented bubble bath to the running water, then showed the girl where the towels were. While the tub filled, Kari retrieved Ana Luisa’s suitcase and then showed the girl to the guest bedroom.
“Make yourself at home,” Kari said, then left the room.
After returning to the living room, Kari sank down onto the sofa, closed her eyes, and immediately had a mental image of Rourke resting outside in the coffin. It would be hours until the sun set. Tomorrow, she would have to return the hearse, then go to the market and stock up on groceries. She glanced at her watch, wondering if Ana Luisa was going to spend the night in the tub.
Another thirty minutes passed before Ana Luisa emerged from the bathroom wearing the nightgown Kari had bought for her.
“I thought you’d drowned,” Kari muttered under her breath.
Ana Luisa glanced around the room. “Where is Rourke? You said he would meet us here.”
“I’m sure he’ll be along in a while,” Kari said. “Are you hungry?”
Ana Luisa nodded. “Yes.”
“Well, there’s no food in the house,” Kari said, “and I’m too tired to go out, so…” She reached for the phone and ordered spaghetti, garlic bread, a small pizza, and a salad from Pizza Joe’s.
Joe’s son delivered her order thirty minutes later.
Kari quickly set the table, then dished up the spaghetti. She left the pizza in the box, filled two bowls with salad and two glasses with milk, placed everything on the table, and then sat down across from Ana Luisa.
Ana Luisa regarded the food on her plate with open curiosity. After watching Kari pick up a slice of pizza, Ana Luisa did likewise. She chewed it slowly for a moment before declaring, “I like it! Can I have more?”
“Help yourself.”
The girl had a little trouble winding the spaghetti around her fork. Kari couldn’t remember if forks had been around three hundred years ago, but Ana Luisa got the hang of it after a few minutes and declared that spaghetti was her new favorite food.
Kari had just finished clearing the dishes when someone knocked at the door.
Kari opened it, surprised to find Rourke on the doorstep, since he usually just appeared in the house, and then she remembered that Ana Luisa was in the living room watching TV.
“Is everything all right?” he asked, glancing past her.
“Yes, we didn’t have any trouble at all. You should be a magician.”
He grinned faintly.
“Are you coming in?” she asked when he continued to stand on the porch.
“I must go out for a short time. I came only to make sure you had arrived safely.”
Noting the faint red glow in his eyes, she said, “I guess you haven’t eaten.”
“No.” His nostrils flared. “But you have. Pizza again. And spaghetti.”
She grinned. “They’re my favorites.”
“Heavy on the garlic?” he said, grinning back at her.
“Sorry. Have you ever thought of…never mind.”
“What?”
“Well, instead of going out and, uh, preying on the local population, have you ever thought of, well, getting blood from the Red Cross instead?”
He lifted one brow. “This Red Cross gives blood away?”
“Not exactly, but I saw this movie where a vampire survived on blood taken from a blood bank. And another program where the vampire survived on the blood of cattle.”
Rourke grimaced. “’Tis obvious you have never been a vampire.”
Kari made a face at him. “I guess neither idea appeals to you.”
“No.”
“Well, it was just a thought.”
He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. “You appeal to me. Will you be all right while I am gone?”
“I think I can survive without you for an hour or so,” she said dryly.
His mouth quirked at one corner. “Will you not miss me even a little?”
She shook her head. “I’d say yes, but you’ve already got an ego the size of the Grand Canyon.”
He laughed softly.
“Rourke, what are you going to do about Ana Luisa? I mean, she can’t stay here with me indefinitely, you know.”
He looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, “I will find her a coven. They will look after her.”
Kari nodded, thinking that was probably the best thing to do.
“Thank you for your help,” he murmured, and taking Karinna into his arms, he kissed her.
She swayed against him. The fate of the wizard’s daughter faded away with the rest of the world as his lips claimed hers. She wondered briefly if all vampires kissed as well and as thoroughly as he did, and then she surrendered to the magic of his mouth on hers. His tongue was like a flame as it dueled with her own in a timeless dance of mating, making her yearn for more than kisses. His hands skimmed over her back, massaged her nape, delved into her hair, each touch a wish and a promise.
She was drowning in an endless sea of sensual pleasure when her tongue brushed his fangs. She drew back with a little cry of alarm.
He stared down at her, his eyes glowing with hunger and desire. “I should go,” he said abruptly, then left her standing there battling a hunger of her own.
When her breathing returned to normal and her heart stopped pounding, Kari went into the kitchen, thinking a glass of ice water might cool her ardor. It eased her thirst but did nothing to quench the physical desire he had aroused in her. No other man had ever affected her the way Rourke did, she thought, and technically, he wasn’t even a man. He was a vampire. She had to remember that, but somehow, with the taste of his kisses still on her lips, it didn’t seem to matter.
“Was that Rourke?” Ana Luisa asked when Kari returned to the living room.
“Yes.”
“I thought I heard his voice.” Ana Luisa looked past Kari. “Where is he?”
“He had to go out for a little while,” Kari replied. Taking a seat on the sofa, she curled one leg beneath her. “He should be back soon.”
“Oh.” Ana Luisa returned her attention to the TV for a few minutes, her expression one of disappointment.
Kari tried to concentrate on the program Ana Luisa was watching, but she kept glancing at the door, wondering when Rourke would return.
When the program ended, Ana Luisa yawned, then rose gracefully to her feet. “If you will excuse me, I should like to retire.”
“Sure. Good night.” Kari flipped through the channels until she found a movie she hadn’t seen. She didn’t know how long Rourke would be gone, but with each passing minute, it grew harder and harder to keep her eyes open. Trying to stay awake was a losing battle. The flight and the stress of the last few days were catching up with her.
Going into her room, Kari slipped on a T-shirt and her favorite pair of pajama bottoms, brushed her teeth, and fell into bed, wondering if she would ever be able to call her life her own again.
Rourke stalked the drifting shadows of the night, his hunger and his impatience growing as he searched for prey.
He had just turned down a dark street lined with older homes when he sensed a presence behind him. Whirling around, fangs bared, Rourke found himself face-to-face with another vampire. Startled, he could only stare. Except for Melina, he had not seen another vampire in centuries. Before Vilnius had cursed him, Rourke had wondered from time to time if he and Melina were the last of their kind. Obviously, they were not.
“Who are you?” the stranger demanded, his voice laced with arrogance. “And what are you doing in my territory?”
“Rourke,” Jason replied coolly. “I was unaware that this territory had been spoken for.”
“Yeah, well, now you know.”
“You would do well to treat your elders with respect, fledgling,” Rourke said, baring his fangs.
The other vampire reached out with his preternatural power, testing that of the stranger in his domain.
Rourke met it with a rush of his own force, grinned inwardly as the younger vampire realized, with something of a shock, that he was the weaker of the two. But he didn’t back down.
“This is still my territory,” the young vampire said belligerently.